Bernanke also beat back worries about whether asset purchases and their effect on financial markets can have a discernible positive effect on U.S. economic activity, which expanded at a meager 2 percent annualized clip in the third quarter.
By boosting the prices of stocks and corporate bonds, he said, the Fed's bond buying can - and already has to some extent - stimulate the sort of investment that will begin to put a dent on the nation's 9.6 percent unemployment rate.
"Easier financial conditions will promote economic growth," he said. "Lower corporate bond rates will encourage investment. And higher stock prices will boost consumer wealth and help increase confidence, which can also spur spending."
Still, Bernanke acknowledged that the idea of conducting monetary policy through longer-dated asset buying is relatively unfamiliar, adding that this has caused the Fed to proceed cautiously.
He reiterated the notion that the central bank has the tools it needs to withdraw monetary stimulus if inflation looks to be rising too rapidly.
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